Cambodia’s gaming regulator is looking to expand its knowledge through collaboration with the Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission (VGCCC) in Australia.
The body underlined that during the meeting between the two groups, they ‘shared insights on casino regulation, compliance and enforcement, risk-based approaches, responsible gambling initiatives.’
Furthermore, the collaboration analysed the strength of the Victoria Licensing framework, in a bid to boost Cambodian efforts to plug gaps in their framework.
Commenting on social media, the VGCCC stated: “We value opportunities to engage with international counterparts and strengthen relationships that support knowledge exchange, continuous improvement and effective regulation. We thank the CGMC delegation for their engagement and look forward to continued cooperation in the future.”
Cambodia is looking to bolster the reputation of its gambling sector after it was plagued by controversy over scam centres.
Prime Minister Hun Manet recently issued a stark warning that the country is engaged in a ‘war to restore reputation’ after allegations led to it being portrayed as the centre of Southeast Asia’s scam network.
Speaking during a business conference, he stated: “Online scams are not only a new form of transnational crime, but also create an informal or grey economy that seriously affects Cambodia’s reputation and public trust. Therefore, Cambodia will continue to fight against them.”
Victoria has a history of rebuilding its reputation, having won back the trust of many and forged a stronger reputation amidst previous controversies.
After much criticism, the Victoria framework banned junkets and CCTV monitoring, as well as a tip-off programme for criminal activity, and tighter AUSTRAC/police collaboration, putting itself on a path to a stronger more reputable framework.
It’s not a dissimilar journey to the one that Cambodia is aiming to travel as it looks to move away from a past plagued by controversy.
Recently, as part of the action, authorities in Cambodia confirmed that they had shut down 91 casinos accused of supporting online fraud networks, which came just days after China demanded tougher action on cross-border gambling.
According to reports from the Xinhua News Agency, there was also raids on 250 online scam centres in the past nine months, and over 13,000 foreign nationals linked to online scam operations in Phnom Penh were also raided.
